Katrina Ariel – Page 24 – Yoga with Katrina Ariel

The Twilight Of The Year: A Talk With Anusara Yoga’s John Friend

November 1, 2009Katrina Ariel4 Comments

Let me paint you a picture.

It’s Halloween in New Orleans. Eminem, Kiss, and Lenny Kravitz are headlining Voodoo Fest. There are more parties in the city this weekend than you could possibly count. It’s famed the most haunted city in America, and notorious for wildness and playing the edge of having a good time. Even the cemeteries, ornate and prominent, seem to communicate that, yes, this is a place where anything is possible and the dead still hold presence here.

Into this scene steps John Friend, founder of Anusara® yoga and an all around totally profound, down to earth, highly educated good guy with a great sense of humor and storytelling ability. He has come to speak to a room of the curious about the magic and tradition of this time of year. Here is a summary of his talk…

Yoga in Metairie and New Orleans LA

October 30, 2009Katrina Ariel

Metairie LA and the New Orleans area is such a great place for yoga. Why? Because it’s so rich and full of life, culture, and soul already – doing yoga here is like bathing in multicolored vibrancy!

I spend half of my year in New Orleans and the other half in BC, Canada. I love both places deeply. My family lives in Metairie, just north of New Orleans, so I have a great reason to come here to teach, play, practice, and discover new adventures of yoga off the mat.

When I’m teaching in New Orleans I generally sub for local instructors at Swan River Yoga. I also enjoy teaching at the local gym, because the ladies there are so great. Of course, gym yoga is a totally different environment, but don’t think that the right teacher can’t still take you deep into your center while you push the edge and break a sweat.

What Is Your Path To God?

October 30, 2009Katrina Ariel8 Comments

“God is in glue?”

Me: “What’s God?”
Mom: “God is everything.”
Me: “You mean God is the table? The bed? The cat?”
Mom: “Yes.”
Me: “God’s in glue?”

I remember this conversation with my mom. I was very young, maybe 4 or 5. We were sitting at a miniature table doing crafts or something, and the topic of God came up. Now this is my fuzzy and probably oversimplified recollection of it, but the basic idea still holds.

That was basically the foundation of my own personal belief system. God is in the glue. God IS the glue, that which holds it all together and lets it all fall apart to be renewed.

Infinite Paths

Is even possible to count the vast number of philosophies and methods of finding God (or Supreme Consciousness, or whatever word you prefer to use for that indescribable source energy)? Really, it must be expanding every day.

Each heart feels its own connection, each mind interprets differently; your own experience of what you believe is unique to you.

Read More “What Is Your Path To God?”

Consciousness Altering Substances And Yoga

October 28, 2009Katrina Ariel1 Comment

buddhaBoy From the beginning of time, humans have been experimenting with different ways to shift and expand the way we see and experience life.

A couple of weeks ago I was in Santa Fe at a training with John Friend, and I found a new method of altering consciousness that left me high and happy without side effects or legal considerations.

Here’s the blog post describing that experience. Forget the bong, try a Gong Bath.

Now, aboriginal people around the world have used sacred medicines, such as peyote and ayahuasca, to attune with a bigger energy, heal and change themselves. Cannabis, that controversial plant, has been widely proven again and again to have more uses from hemp to healing than any other plant we know of.

Private Yoga Classes In Kamloops, BC and Metairie, LA

October 28, 2009Katrina Ariel27 Comments

I am very happy to offer private yoga classes in Metairie LA, as well as the New Orleans area. I’ll also be in Kamloops, BC starting May 2010 to offer yoga classes there. Private yoga sessions are tremendously beneficial, and have been so appreciated by the wonderful people I work with!

“I have been helped enormously by you, and your approach to yoga, Katrina. The private classes I took with you have had a truly remarkable effect, and I am constantly amazed at just how perceptive you were. I could see your extraordinary perceptiveness right away, but time has only deepened my appreciation of your insights. You are a truly wonderful teacher. Thank you so much for all the help and care you have given me – and continue to give me!” ~ Alexander Forbes

Though group classes are excellent, dynamic, and can be really fun, there is nothing like private yoga classes to really explore your individual practice. Both group and private classes are important, and each have their place.

First of all, private sessions can also be fun, dynamic, and extraordinary experiences. I mean, if you don’t enjoy it, why would you want to keep doing it?

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High On Sound: A Gong Bath

October 26, 2009Katrina Ariel4 Comments

Forget the bong. You want a consciousness altering experience? Try a gong bath.

Say what?

A gong bath. I hadn’t heard of it either, so if you have no idea what I’m talking about, hang in there, I’ll explain.

This experience was offered in Santa Fe, New Mexico, during a week of training with Anusara® yoga’s founder, John Friend. After the last training session of the day, we cleared the room and Richard Rudis, a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism and skilled gong bath guy came in.

I’ll have to tell you, I was a little nervous.

Read More “High On Sound: A Gong Bath”

Yoga in Metairie, LA

October 26, 2009Katrina Ariel17 Comments

Metairie is a beautiful suburb of New Orleans, Louisiana. I love offering yoga in Metarie because the people here are friendly and fun, just like most of the people in the New Orleans area.

I teach an uplifting, therapeutic, empowering yoga as an Anusara-Inspired™ yoga instructor. The combination of a fun loving, flowing, heart oriented philosophy with specific alignment principles is one that has revolutionized the world of yoga, and transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

I am available for private yoga sessions to help you in many ways, including the following:

To address specific physical conditions, concerns, or pain, so you understand how to keep yourself optimally aligned on and off the mat
To help you develop a safe and enjoyable personal practice you can do on your own at home
To save you time so you don’t have to travel to class

When you request private yoga sessions with me, I come to your home so you don’t waste any time traveling to a class, and you’re also in a very comfortable environment.

Enlightenment In New Orleans

October 25, 2009Katrina Ariel2 Comments

Alright. I’m convinced. All this meditating and yoga is truly the best natural high.

Yesterday I woke up, did an hour of meditating, chanting, and being with nature. Then, after my green smoothie and a yoga practice, I got ready for an adventure into downtown New Orleans.

What I find is that, when I keep up with my meditation and asana practice, I’m more consistently happy. Content. Centered.

It makes for a much more enjoyable life. I walk around smiling at people, and then (generally) they smile, and the whole happiness thing expands.

Yesterday was the first time I’ve been to New Orlean’s French Quarter since I was here last spring.

Morning Light

October 23, 2009Katrina Ariel

The light is so beautiful this morning.

Everything green dances in the wind.

I simply sit and let the visions come to me;

The face in the tree, the waving branches,

The constantly shifting shades of illumination.

Kiwi Goodness Green Smoothie Recipe

October 22, 2009Katrina Ariel3 Comments

Okay, I’ve got a new favorite.

This morning’s green smoothie developed from whatever I could find to put in the Vita Mix. Since I’m visiting my parents at the moment, and my dad brought home some kiwis, I thought I’d throw one in.

At some point this summer I ate my first kiwi with the skin on. I know, if you haven’t done it this seems very strange, but it doesn’t taste bad at all, and gives you more fiber and other goodness. So for my smoothie this morning all I did was cut the very tips of the kiwi off (the hard bits) and toss the rest in.

Kiwi is very low on the glycemic index (meaning it’s less likely to spike your blood sugar and insulin levels). It also is high in potassium and vitamin C, as well as other minerals and vitamins.